The office is where anyone in the working class spends most of their time. An office space is filled with other people, and as such, people-relations is essential to ensuring that work is fully enjoyed on a day-to-day basis. More so, one’s work environment needs to be conducive enough to inspire the highest level of output in everyone.
Research shows that people who have a best friend at work are more likely to be engaged at their jobs; that is, they are more likely to be committed to helping the organisation achieve their goals. Research by the Gallup organisation also showed that workers who simply have a good friend in the workplace are more likely to be happy.
Not every work relationship will be great, but the effort needs to be made to ensure peaceful co-existence in the workplace. A good work relationship requires trust, respect, self-awareness, inclusion, and open-communication. No one is required to have very close friends in the workplace, but good working relationships make life easier. It is an art, seeing as there is no direct way to establish relationships with workers. An art is an application of human creative skill and imagination, to yield a work of art. Mindtools.com suggests a few steps for people to build great work relationships. These include:
Schedule Time to Build Relationships:
Though the workplace is designed for work, the people you work with have lives beyond the work environment. You may not need to know everything about them outside of the office space, but showing care and concern for what they go through and share or what they do can inspire some level of respect, trust and open-communication between people. Taking time to respond to a colleague’s social media posts is one way to show interest in their lives beyond the work environment.
Develop Your Emotional Intelligence:
Emotions are one way to quickly destroy a good working relationship, and make the work environment a very stale place to thrive in. Knowing what actions or words are in bad taste, will be of great assistance in building good bonds in the workplace. Being aware of your own emotions and what works for you also informs this on a large scale.
Appreciate Others:
No matter how small the success, it helps boost people’s morale when they are appreciated, especially for the little things that seem to be insignificant. A word of encouragement can go a long way to inspire confidence in their work.
Manage Your Boundaries:
In as much as the effort needs to be made to create a positive environment, many colleagues will have some boundaries on what is appropriate and what is not. Always have an open mind to receive constructive feedback on how you relate with others in the world of work.
Avoid Gossiping:
Gossiping is not a trait or quality that spices up any relationship. Especially in the workplace, where the aim is to produce a positive atmosphere of mutual trust and respect.
In as much as workers may value their “upward relationships”, regular one-on-one relationships are as equally important. How your CEO, manager or supervisor relates with you is as equally important as how colleague relates with you. Every HR Manager should have the right and enabling environment to ensure that workers are free to build bonds and relationships that boost productivity at work.
Your workplace is like your second home, especially when you work in a physical space and not just virtually. The relationships you build in there should count for good and fruitful relationships.
Written by:
Ewurabena Neequaye
